Ansgar (the beginning)

Ansgar was initially amused by the men's light-hearted banter concerning their first meeting, allowing himself to chuckle along. But when the story turned grim, so too did he. A host of brazen outlaws eager to rape, steal and kill had slaughtered a total of fifty-six men and he had never even heard of the Swamp Battle of the Mukett Wetlands. Had he truly been so isolated back home at Lone Wolf Rock? Or was it just a cruel truth that men bled and died and the rest of the world hardly took notice?

For the first time, Ansgar seemed to wake fully to the reality of where he was and what he was doing. A shiver ran up his spine and panic gripped at his heart as he gazed out at the darkened forest surrounding the camp and considered Jesof's horror stories about the attacks in Mudswood. Were the four of them on their way to a similarly dismal fate?

He then stared at Gaeron Oakiron, full of even more respect now than he already had for the man. He alone had survived the brigands in the first skirmish on the Aldair South; no mean feat, he was sure. And who knew the sort of dangers Sir Helut had met and overcome. The Northerner's fears subsided some; if he was to face some monstrous beast or a band of bloody-minded bandits, surely these two were the men to have at his side. He just hoped he would not prove the weak link amongst them.

"That is an extraordinary story," he said neutrally, not wanting to show any cowardice or disrespect. "I should hope to never find myself in such dire circumstances, but if I do, I would pray my courage held true."

Ansgar suddenly realized he was very, very tired. "But if it please you," he said to Sir Helut, "I should like to turn in now, I think."

"Aye, lad;" Helut said with a nod, "Get your rest then. I think you'll be needing it on the morrow."

As Ansgar lay on the hard earth he heard the knight and guard talking in low voices, exchanging reminiscence of their past and laughing at times. The man from Mudswood was snoring before Ansgar finally fell asleep.

His dreams were anything but pleasant. In his mind he saw the people being ripped apart from something that rose from the bog. He wanted to run, but knew that he couldn't or shouldn't; and so he pressed on. It was midnight black and slick-skinned, like a man drenched in oil. The only things about it that weren't black were it's cold grey eyes which seemed to glow against the darkness, and the ugly yellow of it's rows of teeth. A bluebird darted between Ansgar and the creature swatted it to the earth. Where it landed a tree grew with unnatural speed, climbing the sky and swelling as it went. The tree was a soft white color, the bark like parchment; the leaves small but thick, like mutated needles.

The tree called to him, spoke his name and beckoned him toward it. It said his name again and again and soon Ansgar found himself being shaken awake, the fire from the night before down to hot coals and the sun staining the sky a light peach color as it peaked over the horizon. He smelled eggs and felt his stomach rumble a bit.

"Kind of you to wake, Ansgar;" Sir Helut told him; "I was beginning to worry that you'd sleep forever."

"There are two eggs left and some bread,"Gaeroon said. "We've already eaten so help yourself."

"Do it quickly now, lad;" Jesof said gruffly; "Lives are depending on you."

The eggs sat in a greased iron skillet on the coals, a chunk of bread torn from a loaf sat beside it toasted slightly underneath. Once he'd eaten, the group mounted their steeds and continued along the road, diverging from the maid roadway to a smaller, almost trail-like road. The little road took them through thick woods for some time, the canopy of trees overhead blotting out the sun from time to time. They exited the wood and crossed a small river via a modest looking bridge.

"We'll be in Mudswood soon enough," Jesof assured them. He began looking more and more nervous as they traveled, sweat glistening from his dirty face. Sir Helut and Gaeron exchanged glances, the knight riding closer to his squire to briefly address him.

"We don't know what we're going to find when we get to the village," he told the young man. "Prepared for chaos and expect the worst. With any luck it'll be nothing more than a bear or a swamp shark."

[OOC: Post what you will, on my next update you will finally reach Mudswood.]